Award Season Begins! AMERICAN PSYCHO and SHE LOVES ME Lead the Pack with Outer Critics Circle Nominations

Just this morning, Something Rotten and Spotlight star Brian d'Arcy James along with this season's break-out and genuflecting sensation Jennifer Simard from Broadway's Disaster announced the The Outer Critics Circle nominees for the 2015-16 season from New York's legendary Algonquin Hotel (59 W 44th Street.) Outer Critics Circle nominations are the first major Broadway/Off-Broadway award nominees of the New York Theater season. Of note, because they were eligible last year for their Off-Broadway incarnations, HAMILTON, BLACKBIRD and DISASTER! were only eligible for new elements.

Due to OCC's nomination deadline, the producers of the new Broadway musical SHUFFLE ALONG asked to be considered with next season's entries.

Leading the pack were AMERICAN PYSCHO and SHE LOVES ME with 8 nominations each, followed by BRIGHT STAR, and ON YOUR FEET! with 7 nominations, DEAR EVAN HANSEN (Off-Broadway) with 6 and ECLIPSED, LAZARUS, SPRING AWAKENING and LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT with 5.

Check out the full list of nominees below:

OUTSTANDING NEW BROADWAY PLAY
Eclipsed
The Father
The Humans
King Charles III
Thérèse Raquin

OUTSTANDING NEW BROADWAY MUSICAL
American Psycho
Bright Star
On Your Feet!
Tuck Everlasting
Waitress

OUTSTANDING NEW OFF-BROADWAY PLAY
The Christians
Familiar
Gloria
Hold On to Me Darling
The Legend of Georgia McBride

OUTSTANDING NEW OFF-BROADWAY MUSICAL
Cagney
Daddy Long Legs
Dear Evan Hansen
Lazarus
Southern Comfort

OUTSTANDING BOOK OF A MUSICAL (Broadway or off-Broadway)
Lazarus (David Bowie and Enda Walsh)
Daddy Long Legs (John Caird)
On Your Feet! (Alexander Dinelaris)
Dear Evan Hansen (Steven Levenson)
Bright Star (Steve Martin)

OUTSTANDING NEW SCORE (Broadway or off-Broadway)
Waitress (Sara Bareilles)
Daddy Long Legs (Paul Gordon)
Bright Star (Steve Martin and Edie Brickell)
Dear Evan Hansen (Benj Pasek and Justin Paul)
American Psycho (Duncan Sheik)

OUTSTANDING REVIVAL OF A PLAY (Broadway or off-Broadway)
Blackbird
The Crucible
Fool for Love
Long Day's Journey Into Night
A View From the Bridge

OUTSTANDING REVIVAL OF A MUSICAL (Broadway or off-Broadway)
The Color Purple
Dames at Sea
Fiddler on the Roof
She Loves Me
Spring Awakening

OUTSTANDING ACTOR IN A PLAY
Reed Birney, The Humans
Gabriel Byrne, Long Day's Journey Into Night
Frank Langella, The Father
Mark Strong, A View From the Bridge
Ben Whishaw, The Crucible

OUTSTANDING ACTRESS IN A PLAY
Jayne Houdyshell, The Humans
Jessica Lange, Long Day's Journey Into Night
Lupita Nyong'o, Eclipsed
Nicola Walker, A View From the Bridge
Michelle Williams, Blackbird

OUTSTANDING ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
Alex Brightman, School of Rock
Danny Burstein, Fiddler on the Roof
Robert Creighton, Cagney
Ben Platt, Dear Evan Hansen
Benjamin Walker, American Psycho

OUTSTANDING ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL
Laura Benanti, She Loves Me
Carmen Cusack, Bright Star
Cynthia Erivo, The Color Purple
Jessie Mueller, Waitress
Ana Villafañe, On Your Feet!

OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTOR IN A PLAY
Sanjit De Silva, Dry Powder
Matt McGrath, The Legend of Georgia McBride
Jim Norton, The Crucible
Robert Sella, Sylvia
Michael Shannon, Long Day's Journey Into Night

OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTRESS IN A PLAY
Pascale Armand, Eclipsed
Zainab Jah, Eclipsed
Judith Light, Thérèse Raquin
Saycon Sengbloh, Eclipsed
Myra Lucretia Taylor, Familiar

OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
Nicholas Barasch, She Loves Me
Roger Bart, Disaster!
Michael Esper, Lazarus
Christopher Fitzgerald, Waitress
Terrence Mann, Tuck Everlasting

OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL
Danielle Brooks, The Color Purple
Andrea Burns, On Your Feet!
Sophia Anne Caruso, Lazarus
Jane Krakowski, She Loves Me
Hélene Yorke, American Psycho

OUTSTANDING DIRECTOR OF A PLAY
Evan Cabnet, Gloria
Mike Donahue, The Legend of Georgia McBride
Rupert Goold, King Charles III
Joe Mantello, The Humans
Ivo Van Hove, A View From the Bridge

OUTSTANDING DIRECTOR OF A MUSICAL
Michael Arden, Spring Awakening
Walter Bobbie, Bright Star
Scott Ellis, She Loves Me
Rupert Goold, American Psycho
Michael Greif, Dear Evan Hansen

OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHER
Joshua Bergasse, Cagney
Spencer Liff, Spring Awakening
Josh Rhodes, Bright Star
Randy Skinner, Dames at Sea
Sergio Trujillo, On Your Feet!

OUTSTANDING SCENIC DESIGN (Play or Musical)
Beowulf Boritt, Thérèse Raquin
David Korins, Misery
Mimi Lien, John
David Rockwell, She Loves Me
Walt Spangler, Tuck Everlasting

OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN (Play or Musical)
ESosa, On Your Feet!
Jane Greenwood, Bright Star
Katrina Lindsay, American Psycho
Jeff Mahshie, She Loves Me
Tom Scutt, King Charles III

OUTSTANDING LIGHTING DESIGN (Play or Musical)
Donald Holder, She Loves Me
Natasha Katz, Long Day's Journey Into Night
Kenneth Posner, On Your Feet!
Ben Stanton, Spring Awakening
Justin Townsend, American Psycho

OUTSTANDING PROJECTION DESIGN (Play or Musical)
Lucy Mackinnon, Spring Awakening
Peter Nigrini, Dear Evan Hansen
Peter Nigrini, Grounded
Finn Ross, American Psycho
Tal Yarden, Lazarus

John Gassner AWARD (Presented for an American play, preferably by a new playwright)
Boy by Anna Ziegler
I and You by Lauren Gunderson
Ironbound by Martyna Majok
The Royale by Marco Ramirez
Ugly Lies the Bone by Lindsey Ferrentino

OUTSTANDING SOLO PERFORMANCE
Mike Birbiglia, Thank God for Jokes
Kathleen Chalfant, Rose
Anne Hathaway, Grounded
James Lecesne, The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey
Daphne Rubin-Vega, Empanada Loca

SPECIAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
James Houghton Signature Theatre Company

Celebrating its 66th season of bestowing awards of excellence in the field of theater, the Outer Critics Circle is an association with members affiliated with more than ninety newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations, Internet, and theatre publications in America and abroad.

The winners will be announced on Monday, May 9th. The annual Gala Awards Dinner and presentation of awards to the winners will be held on Thursday, May 26th (3PM) at the legendary Sardi's Restaurant.